Alternative Reality
by hpets
Summary: The reality they return to after 1947 is definitely not what Jack was expecting, especially when he makes it home and finds a ghost using his favourite yellow dish cloth. Slash Nathan x Jack


Alternate, Alternate Reality

A Eureka FanFic

AN: Hello everyone. I decided I really like Eureka and thought why not write a fanfic. This is set at the beginning of season 4 when they switch realities when they return back to their own time.

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Eureka TV series or anything to do with the Eureka franchise._

Nathan/Jack

_Warning:_

_Male x Male relationship_

_Unbeta'd = lots of missed mistakes (please don't hate me)_

_Spoilers: Season 4_

ALTERNATE

They were back, they had made it but he needed to get home, he needed to find out what had changed. He needed to know Zoe was ok.

The door opened at his touch and with a tentative step he walked inside. It didn't look like anything had changed, at least at first. But he was positive that grey jacket hanging on the coat rack wasn't his and pink gumboots weren't his either. He really hoped they weren't Zoe's either because he didn't think he could deal with her terrible two's again.

"Sarah?" Jack questioned tentatively, "You there?"

"Yes Sheriff."

His house's voice sent gave him a small amount of relief. She would know.

"Is Zoe still at Harvard?"

"Of course Jack, where else would she be," a familiar condescending tone with a hint of fondness answered. He froze as Stark rounded the corner from the kitchen, the colour draining from his face.

Stark, Nathan Stark was still alive and he was in his kitchen wiping his hand on his yellow spotted dishtowel.

"I, I," Nathan smiled at his impaired speech looking him up and down slowly.

"I know you said you had a surprise for me but this I didn't expect," He said moving closer a lecherous smile in place as he rested a hand on Jack's hip, "But I like it, I mean you got the jacket wrong but I'm sure taking it off will be a lot of fun."

Jack couldn't move, the man he had watched disintegrate was in his house, the man he was sure hated him or at least really disliked him was in his house. The pretentious asshole that pulled Allison away from him was in his house leaning down to kiss him.

A high-pitched giggle and a splat interrupted them before Jack could fully comprehend the situation. Nathan pulled away turning towards the noise.

"Jenna I through I told you throwing food is bad," the man scolded disappearing back into the kitchen. Jack followed after a moment and found a giggling Jenna mashing her spoon into her high chair as Nathan bent down to retrieve her spilt bowl from the floor.

"Um," Jack blinked taking in the scene. He saw the scribbled drawings on the fridge and the colourful plastic cups and bowls stacked neatly on the shelves. He took in the toy basket in the corner and a tiny red jacket draped over a chair. He even noticed the broom closet door was partly open giving him a glimpse of an old pram. The dead give away were the pictures adorning the dinning room wall. Pictures of him and Nathan together, smiling and kissing, of them with various people in Eureka including Allison and Henry. And finally of him and Nathan with Jenna first when she was a tiny baby just born by the hospital background to now. Conclusion he and Nathan were a couple, he and Nathan apparently were Jenna's parents.

Carter couldn't believe it. He was with Nathan, Nathan was alive.

"While standing there and looking dashing maybe quiet appealing, you could give me a hand," Nathan butted into his freak out throwing a dishtowel at him.

"Right," Jack replied catching the towel automatically, he could do this he could clean up.

Slowly Jack managed to get a hold of himself as he methodically went about cleaning up the gluggy porridge from the floor.

"Better get Jenna cleaned up or we won't make it to the founders day presentations," Nathan smiled pulling a struggling Jenna from her chair as Jack rinsed out the dishcloth.

"Ok, I better get into town and check to make sure nothings going to go wrong," Jack agreed deciding he need to back away, go and find Allison or Henry try and work out what was going on in this time line.

"Sure Sheriff," Nathan jibbed peaking Jack on the lips before he could react, "Don't forget your ring you left it on the sink last night. Wouldn't want anyone getting any ideas," He finished in a deadpan voice as he disappeared up stairs with Jenna. His ring he found next to the sponge. It seemed he and Nathan weren't just together they were married.

ALTERNATIVE

"Allison," Jack called shutting the door behind him. Allison's house had been the closest when he all but ran from his own to avoid another encounter with Nathan.

"In here," Her voice shaking with emotion came from the kitchen.

Jack rushed to her when he found her leaning over the counter tears brimming from her eyes.

"Allison, what's wrong what's happened, is it Kevin?," he questioned wrapping a comforting arm around her waist as he lead her to sit at the table.

"No, no, Kevin's fine. More then fine I mean, " Alison tried to explain looking up the smallest smile twitching at her lips as she spoke about her son, "He spoke to me he actually looked me in the eyes. But Jack, when I asked about Jenna he said she was with Nathan. And she's not here. She can't be," Alison's voice cracked unable to continue tears sliding down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey," Jack soothed kneeing down beside her, "its ok Jenna's fine, she's at my house."

"What?" she asked confused wiping at her tears, "Why is she there, who's with her?"

"Stark's alive Allie, and he has Jenna, but things are a bit different here," Jack paused standing up as he pulled something from his pocket.

"Why is Nathan at your house?" She questioned her composure coming back with her curiosity and surprise.

"Because," Jack said placing his ring on the table between them, "I seem to be married to him."

"Wait what?," Allison replied tears stopping at her disbelief as her eyes fixed on the ring sitting on dark wood of the table top.

"Yeah and Jenna, by the look of all the family photos is supposed to be mine and Stark's. We have apparently been together since shortly after I arrived in Eureka if they make any sense." Jack explained everything he had discovered so far investigative mind going back to the photos hanging on the dining room wall.

"So you and Nathan are together and you and he have Jenna?" she tired to confirm pulling her eyes from the ring to look at Jack.

"Yeah that about sums it up." Jack nodded.

"I have to go see her, is she alright?" hysterical mother switched back.

"Allison, Jenna's fine, but we might want to figure out this whole situation before we go charging around," Jack tried to calm her down, "You showing up at my house demanding to see Jenna will tip Stark off that there is something wrong."

"Well then we need to find Henry and the others. Find out what else has changed," Allison stood abruptly wiping the last of her tears from her eyes, then looked down. She still had on the nurses uniform from 1947, "Right after I change."

"Ah yeah," Jack agreed looking down at his own attire as he stood, he had run out before he even considered getting changed, "I have a spare uniform at the station we should all meet up there."

"Ok you go round up the others I'll meet you there," she told him as she disappeared down the hall.

"OK," Jack called after her as he made for the door, but not before sliding his ring from the table and placing it back in his pocket.

ALTERNATE

It didn't take long to find the others. All of them had made their way back into town hoping to find some familiarity after finding out life wasn't as they had left it. Now the five time travellers stood around Jack's desk, Henry and Fargo sorting through his computer trying to find anything they could about their new reality.

"I mean how can the world we know have changed so much, I don't understand," Jack mused exacerbated staring down at the ring now resting on his desk, the gold gleaming dully in the light stretching across the vanished wood.

"It's like a domino effect," Henry tried to explain without looking up from his search, "Just being in 1947 changed history and anything we did increased that change so we have this altered reality we are in now."

"But I'm not gay, but this realities Jack is I mean," Jack started to babble trying to work out the problem in his head, "Not that there is anything wrong with being gay, But I'm not so how could I be with Stark. I mean how is he even here. He died saving reality."

"It just means that that event never happened and he never had to enter the chamber," Fargo butted in voice excited, "So he's alive."

"Ok, ok that's explainable but how is it that I still have Zoe, Stark said she was at Harvard. So was I even ever married to Abby?" Jack questioned looking to Henry for answers.

"Well your records say you were," Henry said turning the computer to face the room, "And they say you were divorced just before you came to Eureka."

"So that's the same then," Jack replied scanning the information on his file or at least the information they could actually access from his computer, "What about everything else?"

"Looking through your files," Fargo continued turning the computer towards him, "You married Stark about a year after you got here, Um and he never married Ms Blake."

"So I was never married to Nathan," Allison stated looking a little saddened by the news.

"No, but," Henry added pulling up some photos in an attempt to cheer her up, "You do seem to be close."

The photos in Jack's personal files showed many for the three of them together with Kevin and Jenna after she was born. One in particular stood out of Nathan and Allison laughing together, the poor quality of the photo indicating Jack as the photographer.

"So Nathan and I are just good friends," Allison confirmed taking in the images.

"It seems so," Henry confirmed turning the computer back.

"But what about Jenna," she wanted to know, her daughter the first thing on her mind.

"I can pull up her birth records," Henry said pausing for a moment hands flying over the keyboard.

"Oh," Fargo exclaimed wary as he read the files over his shoulder.

"What oh," Allison demanded to know moving forward needing to know all the details about why her daughter wasn't with her.

"It seems Jack was right," Henry explained reading out the files, "You are Jenna's mother but it seems you were a surrogate. It says here Jack and Nathan are her legal guardians."

"What so I just gave up my child," Allison demanded voice rising with a hysterical note throwing her hands up.

"No, I don't know," Henry said trying stop her form over reacting, "I can't get that information from here. But we might be able to get it from GD."

"Ok so we need to get into GD and access the files there," Jo nodded helping the situation to stay calm by placing a hand on Allison's shoulder, preventing her from charging off.

"Yeah and then we can find out everything else. Like if me and Jo are rulers of the universe or something cause otherwise this universe plain sucks." Fargo grumbled drawing the attention away from Jack and Allison's situation.

"Why do you say that, what's changed for you guys," Jack asked concerned hip leaning against his own desk.

"Well my sorta girlfriend is a trillionaire and married to an astronaut," Fargo trailed off to let Jo have her say.

"And apparently Zane and I were never a couple," Jo confessed still trying to process it all.

"Jo," Carter tried to comfort her by placing a hand on her shoulder, "I'm really sorry, I know.."

"Its ok," Jo stopped him shrugging his comfort aside as she curled her own arms around her middle, "I just have to deal."

"Hey what about me, my girlfriend is gone too," Fargo butted in, not wanting to be left out.

"Fargo," Allison cut him off, "I'm really sorry Jo, I'm sure we can work something out."

"Yeah," Henry agreed, "But for now I think its best we don't tell anyone about what's happened."

"Yeah no that's probably best," Jack agreed.

"So what do we do now?" Jo questioned.

"We try and get on with our lives," Henry said, "Until we can find out more, find away to get back."

"Well I think we can manage that," Fargo agreed slightly disappointed.

"Speak for yourself," Jack shook his head, "You aren't married to the biggest, male I might add, ass in town."

"Nathan's not that bad," Allison argued in defence of the man she'd once loved and knew to be dead up until an hour ago.

"Yeah to you," Jack mumbled under his breath adjusting his utility belt.

Allison narrow her eyes at him just missing what he said, "What was that Jack?"

"Nothing," Jack jerked his head back up shoving his hands into his pockets, "I just.."

"So this is where you all are," Nathan's voice cut him off startling the group as he stepped through the door into the bullpen eyes roaming over the scene before him.

"Nathan," Allison breathed her sudden realization that Nathan, the man she had almost married again was alive and smiling his calculating smile at the room eyeing each and everyone of them with a suspicious twinkle.

Fargo was the first to react.

"Oh my god, Dr. Stark I'm so glad to see you I can't, your alive," He babbled wrapping his arms around the doctor.

"Um glad to see you too Dr. Fargo," Nathan replied a little confused as he pried Fargo's arms from his waist, "Can someone explain to me what's going on," he asked eyes turned directly to Jack.

"Um," was all he managed before Allison stepped in.

"It's nothing," Allison replied taking Fargo's place as she wrapped her arms around the man, assuring herself when she felt his warmth that the dream she found herself in was real, "Just glad to see you."

"Right, ok," Nathan just agreed arms going around her back as he sensed her distress, eyes searching once again for Jack's asking for a silent explanation. Jack couldn't meet his eyes as his hand darted out of his pocket to grab the ring, slipping it on his finger before Nathan could notice.

"Where's Jenna?" Allison asked stepping back eyes roaming over Nathan's face, her heart fluttered as she took in his familiar features while her mind catalogued the changes; how his eyes seemed to soften when they darted towards Jack, a look she could remember him giving her just before their first wedding.

"Right here," came a female voice in the doorway pulling Alison away from her observations of Nathan as she fixed on the child in the woman's arms. Grace from the founders day committee stepped into the large office Jenna perched on her hip, a big smile brightening her beautiful face.

"Hey baby girl," Allison's reaction was instant scooping up her little girl from the unfamiliar woman to hold her close, taking in her scent, needing the assurance of feeling her child was secure in her arms.

"We have been looking for you everywhere," Grace smiled graciously allowing Allison to take Jenna from her arms Henry in her sights, "Your late sweetie."

Fargo's eyebrows rose in question at her statement, shifting out of the way as she walked across the office a determined look on her face.

"Late for what?" Henry questioned confused as she lent over the desk and pressed soft lips against his cheek. He was quick to press sleep when he saw her eyes dart to the screen before pulling away. A suspicious look passed across her eyes for a moment gaze darting to Jack's anxious look and Allison fixated on her daughter.

"Shut up," Grace laughed quickly regaining her smile as she pulled a slip of paper from Henry's pocket, "Giving speeches is his favourite part of being mayor, he loves it. Now come on your towns people are waiting."

"Right ok," Henry agreed taking the slip of paper, looking over the unfamiliar words written in his own hand. Grace whirled out of the office with a wink to finish getting the podium ready.

"She's on the committee," Jack mumbled shifting closer so only Henry could hear remembering the woman he had met earlier in the day before all of this started.

"And I'm pretty sure I'm married to her," Henry replied quietly showing him his ring as he stood from the desk.

"Ha," Fargo exclaimed drawing everyone's attention including Nathan's, "You're not the only one Sheriff."

"Only what?" Nathan questioned looking at Jack as the three other time travellers glared at Fargo for the slip.

"Um, only," Fargo tried to think up a plausible thing to explain, "Only one to.."

"Why don't we go watch Henry's speech?" Jack cut him off deciding they really didn't need to hear Fargo's excuse, motioning for Henry to go first.

"Yeah," Fargo exclaimed, the first to jump on that idea and bolted for the door, Jo followed at a more sedate place, eyes looking between Jack and Henry as they left a promise to continue the meeting later. Jack heard Fargo mutter something to Jo about Stark calling him doctor, an excited question in his tone.

"And where do you think you're going?" Nathan voice lowered in tone as he grabbed Jack's wrist preventing him from following Fargo's bolt for the door.

"Going to see Henry's speech," He replied tentatively attempting to step closer to the door and away from the sultry look in Stark's eye. Allison was no help, her only thought for her daughter as she disappeared following the others into the sun streaming through the door.

"Shouldn't we talk about this uniform thing, I mean I love this one but I was looking forwards to taking the other off," Nathan's eyes lingered over his body moving closer to curl a hand into Jack's belt.

"Um I, It was just," Jack tried flustered as Nathan's lips inched closer he turned at the last moment Stark's lips and beard tickling his cheek, "I hear Henry we should go," Jack said quickly pulling out of Nathans hold and dashing for the door. He didn't turn around to see the look of hurt confusion flitter across Nathan's face or the sparks of suspicion grow stronger.

ALTERNATIVE

Outside Jack breathed in relief as he spotted Allison with Jenna to one side of the crowd listening intently to Henry's heartfelt speech. Jogging over to them he smiled at Allison making googoo eyes at her daughter. He was happy Jenna was still here in this timeline, but he wasn't sure if he and Nathan should be the one raising her. Hell he and Nathan never seemed to agree on anything so how were they supposed to raise a child together. So the question was what could be possibly do to let Nathan down and tell him he didn't love him or find him attractive, at least he didn't think he did. He'd never actually really thought about it. He knew from experience divorce could be messy and with a child involved especially Allison's child; he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do in this situation.

Before he reached Alison Jenna's face scrunched, as a child's face would do when upset, her big brown eyes squeezing shut. Jack could hear her start to fuss as Allison moved away from the crowd bouncing her up and down in an attempt to stop the tears.

He followed, "Hey Jenna," he tried as he reached them giving Allison a reassuring smile hoping maybe he could help sooth Jenna, but not entirely sure how to go about it.

Jenna turned at his voice her brown eyes blinking to fix on him; her chubby baby fingers reach as she wriggled in Allison's grasp babbling through her tears. Jack took her out of Allison's arms on instinct cuddling the little girl to his chest keeping his voice low and soothing as he spoke, "Hey Jenna what's up what's wrong?" he tried asking bouncing her gently. She clutched at his shirt her tears drying and her smile returning as she buried her face in his shoulder.

Jack looked up with a smile pleased he'd managed to calm Jenna down, the look on Allison's face had that small amount of accomplishment draining away in an instant, "I, Allison, I'm," he wasn't sure what to say. He'd just taken Allison's child from her arms and calmed her down with a few soft words. Devastated was an underestimation of what Allison would be feeling as she realized Jenna, the little girl that only that morning had been looking up at her adoringly, was not her little girl anymore.

"It's, it's ok Jack," she managed with a sad smile a hand resting on Jenna's back for a moment before she pulled away, "She seems really comfortable with you."

"Allison," Jack tried again, but before he could find the words Nathan strode up to them a big smile plastered across his face pushing an empty pram.

"Are you two even listening to Henry's speech?" He grinned placing a hand on the small of Jack's back making the sheriff jolt in surprise at the intimate contact. Nathan seemed to barely notice leaning his hip against Jack's and reaching up to ruffle Jenna's hair like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Ah," Alison startled at what to say, her attention focused on the family picture Jack and Nathan made with little Jenna's toothy smile.

"We, Jenna was fussing so we thought we should move away," Jack answered for them thinking on his feet, doing his best not to tense up under Nathan's hand.

"Oh our little Jen's grumpy," Nathan surprised them with teasing babyish tone as he addressed his daughter, wiping a thumb gently across her check to remove the tear tracks from her skin, "She hasn't been sleeping so well since her teeth started coming in, " his tone changed as he spoke to the adults present eyes flickering to Jack, perhaps a slight challenge sparking in the dark irises, "Isn't that right Jack."

"Yeah, no," Jack laughed covering as much as he could, "Went through the same thing with Zoe," he turned to Allison trying to keep the man's focus away from him, "I'm sure Kevin went through the same thing when he was teething."

"Oh of course," Allison managed after a moments hesitation trying not to think about the nights she had spent trying to sooth Jenna's sores when she couldn't sleep, "I ah used to use a little numbing cream, paediatrics at GD are developing some really good things now to help with teething."

Jack eyes dart away, focusing over Allison's left shoulder hoping his inattention would keep the conversation away from Jenna and her teeth and towards safer subjects that he wasn't expected to know anything about, like the mechanics behind the fully emptying bottle or how the baby monitor works to monitor the mothers and babies physiologies.

A man appeared in his line of vision, a man wearing an old military jacket that looked very familiar casting his eye over the vintage 1940's car moved from the museum for founders day.

"Sorry, excuse me," Jack broke in to Allison and Nathan's conversation of the molecular composition of absorbent nappies barely realising he'd handed Jenna over to Stark instead of Allison who should have been his automatic choice, "Just remembered I need to speak to someone," He informed them striding towards Grant, the 1940's scientist that really should not be in the 21st century.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jack demanded as soon as he was in hearing range hands on hips, and extremely annoyed. It was bad enough he found himself married to Stark, who was very much alive, now he had to deal with blast from the past science man who he knew was bad news the moment he met him.

"Well hello to you to Sport," Grant grinned cockily. The day just got worse from there.

ALTERNATIVE

Jack stumbled into the bunker dropping his gun belt onto the side table as he murmured a greeting as SARAH's welcomed him home. It had been a long day. After finding out he was married to Nathan Stark of all people and they had Jenna together, he'd found out Dr Trevor Grant had used his phone that Henry had rigged to jump to the future, Jo was head of security at GD and Fargo the director, while he ended up with Sheriff Andy as his deputy. The AI had then managed to work out about the whole time travel fiasco before his mechanical brain was fried by the lightning thingy that he and Nathan had managed to stop from frying the rest of the town.

Allison finding out she was the medical director had been quick to look up her and Jenna's medical records finding out she had volunteered to be surrogate for Nathan and Jack, with a donated egg. It seemed something had happened that caused one of Allison's eggs to be fertilised instead of the donor egg resulting in Jenna. And she couldn't be sure if any of them from this reality knew about the mix up especially since the donor of the egg shared her blood type.

And to top it off Henry had declared that the bridge device was dead and they weren't ever going to make it back to their own timeline. Allison had then added the sprinkles. They couldn't tell anyone they were from an alternative time line or they'd all be sanctioned.

He drained his beer, that SARAH had been kind enough to pour him at his request in one go, hoping the alcohol might help him blur out some of the details he wished had never changed. He shuffled up stairs pausing at the door to Jenna's room as he heard the warm tone of Nathan's familiar voice telling the tale of princes and princesses to the little girl curled in his lap. He'd known Stark was home when he stepped in, his suit jacket draped over the back of the couch a dead give away, but looking at him now reading to his little girl made something in his heart clench. This man in his own timeline had disintegrated in front of his eyes, his smirk permanently etched in his mind as he asked him to look after Allison, had never met his daughter never nor had the chance to read her a quiet bed time story and watch as she fell asleep in his arms. The sight brought back so many memories of when he'd had the chance to glimpse the softness and helpless emotion hidden beneath the hard snarky exterior, each of those times when the scientist couldn't hide any longer. He knew Allison knew that side of Stark better then he ever would and that was one of the reasons she loved him so much. Jack slipped away before Nathan could look up and catch him hovering.

The bedroom brought him back to reality as his eyes fell on the pair of reading glasses resting atop a book on advanced physics on the bedside table opposite the one he would usually place his glass of water. The sight had him dashing for the door once again, yelling something about forgetting paper work to cover his tracks. As much as he could deal with Nathan living with him, he was nowhere near ready enough to deal with having to share a bed with the man.

The sheriff's station was familiar and it made it easier for Jack to forget about the man that was now inhabiting his house, who had once been his rival for Allison's affections and who was now apparently in love with him. It made for a very messed up love triangle he thought slumping in his desk chair especially since he had no idea how Allison felt about their kiss in 1947 or how he was supposed to feel about Stark, now that he was alive and not snarking at him as usual. How the deep brown of his eyes seemed to light up whenever he focused them on Jack, and how they darkened with sorrow when he brushed him aside as he ran from the attention.

He picked up the papers stacked neatly on his desk, forms filled and ready for filing. He'd already done all the paper work for the lightning fiasco. Filling out reports on crazy scientists and their explosive experiments had become second nature to him and he'd filled them out before he met his fellow time travellers in Café Diem.

The filing draw rattled as he pulled it open and selected a folder to place the papers in. One thing he was grateful for was the old school filing system, much better then the crazy computer filing system GD kept. Sighing he pulled out a few of the older files and dropped them on his desk. It was probably a good idea for him to check over all the old files, make sure me could remember all the incidents he should and see if there were any that happened in this time line and not his own.

It was a little past midnight when he pushed himself away from the desk leaving files littered across the polished wood. His shirt and belt he left draped over the back of his chair as he slumped towards the cot. It was no where near as comfortable as his bed, but it didn't have a beared scientist invading it so he could forget about the springs digging into his back as he allowed his eyes to droop. Sleep couldn't come fast enough after the insane day he'd had.

Sleep unfortunately was not an option as he jerked upright, the creak of the front door pulling from blissful dreams.

"St.. Scientist," Jack amended quickly as he saw his 'husband' silhouetted in the doorway, "What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing sheriff," Nathan replied striding forwards so he could sit down beside Jack who was too tired to move. The soft wool of his jumper brushed his bare arm as the man leaned closer, the smell of his expensive cologne tickling his nose.

Jack forced a smile, he had worked out quickly that they used their titles as pet names instead of honey or sweetheart. Those endearments were likely reserved for when they were truly mad at each other because that's what he would do if they were actually a couple, not that he had ever actually thought about it til now.

"I didn't what to wake you," he muttered his excuse sliding a hand over his eyes as he leaned forward on his knees an easy way to put a little distance between them without being too obvious.

Nathan obviously didn't catch the hint as he leaned in closer arm finding its way around his waist, "While I understand your memory isn't as good as say mine," he teased lacking any of the bite Jack would expect from the Nathan Start he'd once known, "You would think you would remember be telling you that I would rather be woken by your big feet stumbling through the dark at some ungodly hour then wake up in the morning without you."

Jack sat up blinking at the brown eyes watching him closely, he knew he should feel insulted, but the warmth in Stark's tone made it extremely difficult, "I," Jack started unsure what to say at first then, "Ok I'll remember," he finished too tired to argue as he allowed himself to slump into Nathan's side enjoying the warmth of another body even if it was his former arch nemesis. Whatever he and the Jack of this time had, it must have been good.

"We should head home," Jack yawned pulling himself away trying not to hyperventilate at the prospect of sharing a bed with the man. Sharing body heat in a moment of weakness brought on by exhaustion could easily be rationalised as just being friendly, but sharing a bed was very much out of his comfort zone.

He stretched as he stood ignoring the appreciative look Nathan sent his way, as the scientist followed ready to head for the door, then he remember the little girl under their care, "Where's Jenna?"

"She's at home asleep why?" Nathan said voice flippant like it was the most natural thing in the world shepherding him towards the door.

Jack stopped turning so he could look at his new 'spouse' properly, "And who's watching her?"

"I asked SARAH to keep an eye on her, she's fine," the scientist replied quickly placing a hand on Jack's arm to turn him back towards the door.

"What!" Jack exploded, his tiredness evaporating completely, "You left the house to watch out daughter," he yelled hardly realising what he was saying, "Do you have, I don't even. What happens if she wakes up and no one's there what happens if something happens to her!" He demanded.

"SARAH's capable of calming her and calling us if she needs help," Nathan assured him trying to talk him down.

"She a house not a bloody baby sitter," Jack growled hands flying to his hips before he threw them up in exasperation and fled to the door, not wanting to leave the house in charge for longer then necessary.

"SARAH is more qualified then any baby sitter," Nathan told him as he followed at a more sedate pace, "And you agreed it would be ok for short periods."

"I would never agreed to that ever," Jack growled yanking at the car door.

Nathan smirked reaching the passenger side, "You did the other night when I was.."

"That does not count," Jack shot back feeling his cheeks heat as he thought about what exactly Stark was eluding to.

The drive back to the bunker was silent as Jack fumed, a bubble of relief bubbling as he realised he had an excuse to keep Nathan in the doghouse for a few days. Because who the hell would leave an 18 month old under the care of the freaking house, even if that house was an extremely brilliant self learning AI.

ALTERNATIVE

AN: Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed. Next chapter will be up when I get around to writing it. In the mean time, PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW and tell me what you think. Nice reviews always make we want to write more. :D


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